Cartridge



July 6, 1954 Filed June 21 1950 R. H. HILL CARTRIDGE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ROBERT/M RR/SO/VH/L z.

ATTORNE'X Patented July 6, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CARTRIDGE tion of Delaware Application June 21, 1950, Serial No. 169,490

2 Claims.

pacity such as for thestorage of about 4 ounces of carbon dioxide, they are termed cartridges in the trade. The device with which the cartridge is to be used, such as a fire extinguisher, is constructed with a puncturing member operable to pierce the rupturable sealing disc of the cartridge.

Heretofore cartridges have been provided in which the closure member has been secured in threaded engagement with the inner surface of the cartridge neck. In such cartridges, a seating surface for the disc assembly has been provided on a shoulder about the passage through the closure member. In such cartridges, in order to provide adequate strength in the neck thereof so that the closure member will be held securely against the pressure, it is necesary to form the cartridge with thickened material in the region about its neck. The additional material not only adds to the cost of the cartridge but requires heavier equipment to fabricate the material.

The present invention aims to provide an improved cartridge wherein closure means for the cartridge overlies the container neck, thus permitting a construction wherein the cartridge neck may be made with a minimum of material.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cartridge which is simple and economical in manufacture, efiicient in operation and durable in use.

In accordance with the invention, the foregoing objects are accomplished by providing a cartridge in which an external bushing is adapted to overlie the outlet neck which has its outer end formed liable to become damaged by small particles of abrasive material which may become entrapped between the sealing disc assembly and the seat. Any roughness which might result from the presence of such particles probably would cause damage, if any, to the gasket material which is replaced each time the cartridge is recharged.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and drawings which show, by way of example, an embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates a fragmentary vertical sectional view of a fire extinguisher incorporating a cartridge made in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the upper end of the cartridge and its closure means illustrated in Figure 1. The puncturing member of the extinguisher is shown in full lines as representing its normal position and in dotted lines showing its position to rupture the sealing disc of the cartridge.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown in Figure 1 a liquid fire extinguisher ll} pressurized by a stored fluid pressure medium container ll made in accordance with the invention. The extinguisher may be charged with any suitable fluid, such as water, carbon tetrachloride, dry powder, etc. 7

The fire extinguisher It! does not form part of the invention but is illustrated to show a use for the stored pressure fluid medium container or cartridge 1 I made in accordance with the invention. It is understood that the cartridge ll may be used to pressurize any other suitable device, such as small motors or the like, requiring a stored fluid pressure medium.

The fire extinguisher includes a standard shell I2 adapted to be almost completely filled with the liquid fire extinguishing agent through a filling opening I4 closed by a conventional filling cap [5. In order to expel the extinguishing agent, the stored fluid pressure medium is released from the cartridge H, the fire extinguishing agent then being expelled through an outlet elbow iii and a discharge hose I! having attached thereto a suitable nozzle, not shown.

In order to facilitate its attachment and removal, the filling cap l5 has a hand ring l9 spaced from the body of the cap by legs 26. The hand ring I9 is used as a carrying handle as well as to facilitate engaging the cap with the cartridge. To provide a mounting for the cartridge 7 l I, the underside of the filling cap l5 has a downwardly extending tubular portion 2| with a threaded inner surface to engage upper threaded end 22 of a collar or external bushing 24. Apertures 25 are made in the wall of the tubular por tion 2i for the passage of released fluid from the cartridge II.

In order to release the stored pressure fluid medium from its cartridge ll, puncturing means are provided in the cap member operable from the exterior of the extinguisher. A puncturing member 25 is carried for sliding movement in a guideway 2? of an upwardly turned hollow extension 29 of the cap member 15. The extension 29 is formed with its opening therethrough having various diameters along its length. The lower portion of the opening is somewhat enlarged to form the guideway 2'! for the puncturing member 2%. Immediately above the guideway 21, the opening is restricted to form a shoulder 39, and then enlarged to form a spring recess 3| for a spring 32 positioned about upper end 34 of the puncturing member 25. The spring 32 has its upper end received in a recess 35 of a cap member 33 and its lower end abutting against the shoulder 36. The upper end of the extension 29 is made with a reduced wall section 39 to provide a guideway to be received between side wall 45.3 of the cap member 36 and an inner annular guiding extension 4| positioned concentric therewith. A'pin 42 is frictionally engaged in aligned holes extending through the cap member 35 and the upper end 34 of the puncturing member 26 to hold the assembly in position.

The puncturing member 26 has a pointed lower end 43 to facilitate rupturing a sealing disc 44 of the cartridge H. An intermediate portion 45 of the puncturing member 26 is made with a somewhat larger diameter to be received in the guideway 2'5, and is grooved to provide a recess is for an O-ring ll to prevent leakage.

The flange of the cap member is made with safety venting apertures 45; to insure the release of any pressure in the shell I2 before the cap member i 5 is completely unscrewed from the shell. A sealing gasket 56 is positioned against a shoulder formed on the under surface of the cap member and is compressed against the upper edge of flange 5| of the shell H. toprovide a leakproof seal.

The stored fluid pressure medium cartridge H in accordance with the invention includes a body or container portion 66, which may be made of any suitable material such as steel, to store a fluid medium under high pressure.

The upper end of the body 90 is made with a threaded neck 6! having an outlet passage 62 extending therethrough. The body of the container is flattened at the base of the neck to provide a shoulder 64. The outer end of the neck 56 is made with a seating surface 65 of reduced outer diameter, preferably with a flat surface, although any suitable surface may be used. The closure collar or external bushing 24 is tubular in shape with a threaded inner surface 66. The lower end of the bushing 24 is formed with a slightly pitched surface 61 adapted to abut against shoulder 84, preferably the surface 61 is inclined at an angle of about from the plane of the shoulder 64. In order to attach and remove the cartridge in position, the bushing 24 is formed with a plurality of ears 69.

A unitary sealing disc assembly 10 includes a ring nut or internal bushing H having a threaded outer surface adapted to engage with the threaded inner surface 56 of the external bushing 24. At the lower end of the ring nut H, a

portion of enlarged internal diameter is made to provide a shoulder 12 to receive a gasket 14. The sealing disc 44 is positioned between the gasket 74 and an annular deformable gasket 15 and held in position by an inwardly spun end I! of the ring nut H. .The end ll is made with a somewhat reduced external diameter than the threaded portion to provide a thin wall which may be readily spun in to hold the parts in a unitary assembly. The sealing disc assembly it is adapted to be engaged in the threaded surface 6b of the bushing 24 to abut against the seat to close the cartridge. A plurality of longitudinally extending grooves 19 are cut through the threads of the ring nut ll to provide a passage between its wall and the wall of the bushing 24 for filling the cartridge.

In charging or recharging the cartridge H, the ring nut H is loosened and the bushing 24 secured to a suitable filling machine, and pressurizing fluid passed through the filling grooves 79 across the seat 65 into the outlet passage of the cartridge. After the charging operation is completed, the ring nut H is turned to seat the gasket :76 against the seating surface $5 to retain the stored fluid pressure medium.

In using an extinguisher fitted with a cartridge H, made in accordance with the invention, the extinguisher is inverted and its discharge cap 3E is struck against a surface to move the pointed end 43 of the puncturing member 25 inwardly through the sealing disc 44 to allow the stored pressure medium to escape through the apertures 25 to pressurize the extinguishing agent.

It is thus apparent that the present invention provides a cartridge which is simple and economical in manufacture and which provides a seating surface at the outer end of the neck of the container able to Withstand injury by particles of foreign matter which may be entrapped between the seating surface and the gasket material. Further, it is obvious that a construction is provided eliminating one of the leakage points of prior devices in that there is no change of leakage along the threaded connection between the bushing 25 and the neck 6! of the container as the pressure seal is made between the seating surface 65, the gasket 76 and the sealing disc 44.

While the invention is described and illustrated with reference to a specific embodiment thereof, it will be understood that other embodiments may be resorted to without departing from the invention. For example, while a gasket member has been described and illustrated as being positioned between the sealing disc 44 and the seating surface 65, it is obvious that if a sealing disc were to be used of material having a deformable edge, the gasket it might be eliminated, in which event there would be only one possible source of leakage in the closure of the cartridge. Therefore, the form of the invention set out above should be considered as illustrative and not as limiting the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1., A stored fluid pressure medium cartridge for use with a discharge device having a puncturing member to release the stored comprising, a high pressure fluid container having an outlet neck threaded on its exterior surface, the body of the container having a flattened portion at the intersection with the neck providing a shoulder, a seating surface at th outer end of the outlet neck of smaller diameter than the outer diameter of the outlet neck, a sealing disc assembly including a ring nut, a sealing disc received in the lower end of the ring nut and secured in position therein, the ring nut threaded on its exterior surface, and a bushing member holding the sealing disc assembly in direct contact with the sealing surface of the container, the bushing having a threaded interior surface receiving at its lower end in threaded engagement therewith the container neck and receiving at its upper end in threaded engagement therewith the sealing disc assembly, the exterior surface of the bushing at its upper end threaded for engagement with supporting means, the exterior surface of the bushing at its lower end shaped for engagement by a tool, and the lower edge of the bushing member abutting against the shoulder of the container.

2. A stored fluid pressure medium cartridge for use with a discharge device having a puncturing member to release the stored fluid comprising, a high pressure fluid container having an outlet neck threaded on its exterior surface, a seating surface at the outer end of the outlet neck of smaller diameter than the outer diameter of the outlet neck, a sealing disc assembly including a ring nut, a sealing disc received in the lower end of the ring nut and secured in position therein, the ring nut threaded on its exterior surface, and a bushing member holding the References Cited in the file of this patent UNITEDSTATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,920,127 Heigis July 25, 1933 1,974,254 Allen et al. Sept. 18, 1934 2,077,872 Boyd Apr. 20, 1937 2,129,465 Dodelin Sept. 6, 1938 2,353,254 McCandless July 11, 1944 2,436,364 McDowell Feb. 17, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 15,163 France Feb. 29, 1912 562,403 France Sept. 1, 1923 

